Railway-rail joint



(No Model.

L. ANDERSON & L. M. HOSEA.

RAILWAY RAIL JOINT.

Patented Apr. 10, 1894.

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UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LATHAM ANDERSON AND LEWIS M. HOSEA, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

RAILWAY-RAIL JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 517,829,'dated April10,1894.

Application filed June 28, 1892. Serial No. 438,250. (No model.)

To aZZ whom, it mag concern.-

Be it known that we, LATHAM ANDERSON and LEWIS M. HOSEA, citizens of theUnited States, residing at Cincinnati, Ohio, have invented new anduseful Improvements in Railway-Rail Joints, of which the following is aspecification.

Our invention relates to railway tracks; its

object being to provide a cheap and efficient supporting connection forthe meeting ends of railway rails, which shall constituteabase supportforthe rails and efficiently resist both vertical and lateral stresses.To this end and to secure advantages hereinafter advertedto, ourinvention consists, pr1mar1ly ,in a supporting connection for themeetlng ends of railway rails, having the form, substantially, of arolled I-beam, or channel-bar, adapted to rest upon and betweencontiguous cross-ties and carry the rails 1n the trough between thevertical side flanges upon the connecting web, with a central chairplateor shield at one or. both sides covering the meeting ends of the rails;also in the constructive arrangement whereby the supports are secured tothe ties and the rails to the supports by ordinary rail spikes-all boltsor special adjuncts being dispensed with; and the entire structure isfinished at the'shop and requires no assembling of parts on the ground.

Mechanism embodying our invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings showing the principle thereof in two typical forms ofconstruction.

In the illustrations:-Figure 1, is a plan View of the rails andsupporting connection complete in the first of the typical formsreferred to, showing the supporting connection as an I-beam resting uponand secured to the cross ties by spikes driven to secure the rails inthe ordinary manner beyond the supporting connection. Fig. 2, is avertical cross section of the same through the chair plates. Fig. 3, isa plan, and Fig. 4, a cross section of the second of the typical formsof construction, namely; a channel-bar with chairplates secured to thebottom-web and with bolt-holes through the bottom web at both sides ofthe rails. Fig. 5, is .a partial longitudinal section of the supportingconnection showing the mode of securing the chair plate ment.

last mentioned; and Fig. 6, a detail cross-sec tion showing amodification wherein the chairto receive the connecting web, 1), so thatits upper surface will lie flush with the surface of the tie. The widthof the trough at the upper surface of the web is just sufiicient toreceive the base, r, of the rails, R, in a close fit. By recessing theties and seating the flanges, a, in the grooves thus formed, the I-beamis secured against lateral displace- It is held to the ties and end-playpreventedby the four rail spikes, S, driven respectively at oppositesides of each rail in the usual manner just beyond and against the endsof the beam, A. The rails, R, thus secured enter the trough of theI-beam, meeting about midway, where their bases, 7', are held beneathcovering shields or chair plates, 0. These chair plates are preferablydrop-forged in the form shown, with corresponding side-shanks, c, c,which are inserted through suitable apertures in the side flanges, a, asshown in Fig. 2, expanded in said apertures and held by upsetting theouter ends. They are intended 'to fit the con tour of the rail bases,1', closely and span across the interval between the "rail ends.

Inasmuch as the vertical load upon the structure produces a compressivestress in the upper half of the flanges, a, the shank apertures thealignment or the track and the integrity of the joints. W'e avoid thisdifficulty by the construction of the joint described, and by notchingthe rail-base at opposite sides at or about the longitudinal center asindicated at, at, (Fig. 1;) so that the holding spikes driven into thecentral tie, t, in said notches, perform the double function of holdingthe rail to its tie and at the same time anchor it centrally as againstany tendency to longitudinal displacement. All elongation or contractionby varying temperature or otherwise being thus referred to a fixedcentral point in each rail of the entire track, and the endjoint beingconstructed to permit a limited end movement of the rails, it becomespracticable to abut the rails quite closely in the joints, allowing onlysufficient space to accommodate the effect of the extremes ofatmospheric temperature. Thus all buckling of the track is prevented andconsequent injuries to the connecting joint prevented.

Instead of relying upon an anchorage at one central tie only, we mayduplicate the notches to form a similar engagement upon an adjacentcross tie.

Insteadof sinking the I-beain in the tie to bring the bottom of thetrough flush with the tie surface, grooves for the side flanges only maybe provided, and the web, 5, may be extended longitudinally outward ateach end beneath the rail asasupport across the tie or the rails mayrest upon suitable plates provided for the purpose.

Referring now to the second typical form of the device, illustrated inFigs. 3 and 4, A, designates a rolled channel-bar cut to length to restentirely across and between the two contiguous ties, t. The channel-barconsists of two parallel sides, a, a rising above the connecting web,I), as far as may be, within the clearance limits of the car wheel. Thechannel-bar may be provided at each side with an outer ledge, 1),extending its bottom web, 1). Between the vertical sides, a, a therails, R, rest upon the web, b,-the width of the channel between thesides being greater than that of the rail-base by about the thickness ofthe ordinary rail-spike, at each side. Through the web, b, adjacent tothe vertical sides, are punched four holes at longitudinal intervals,those nearest the ends of the channel being used as spike-holes forholding spikes S, and the central ones for the insertion of the shanks,cof chair plates, 0. The latter are substantially similar to those shownin Figs. 1 and 2, but have their shanks extended downward through thebottom. web, 1), instead of outward through the sides, and securedbyexpansion and upsetting outward as shown.

In manufacturing, the punching of holes through the web, I), may beeffected during the final step of rolling a continuouschannelbar whichis then cut in lengths. The insertion of the plates, 0, may besubsequently made while the latter are heated and thus upset and securedover a proper templetrepresenting the railbase, r, to produce a closedriving fit upon the ultimate rail when applied in use. These partsbeing properly constructed as indicated, the supporting connection, A,is placed across and between the ties,t, and the rail ends inserted intoposition and held by the chair-plates, c, and the inner spikes, 8. Outerspikes, .9 are then driven at opposite ends of the bar, A, engaging uponthe outer ledge,b'. The chair-plates, c, and the spikes, 3 are intendedto wedge the rail tight between the opposite sides, a, a of the channeland prevent lateral or vertical movement of the rail. The outer ledge,b,and spikes, s, secure the support to the ties independently of the railand add to the security of the joint. This latter construction isespecially adapted to roads where the heaviest traffic is carried, asthe mode of support is that of a girder with firmly fixed ends. The railholdings are symmetrically disposed into a fixed system.

A modification may be made in the chair plate, that is to say; it may beformed as an integral part of the channel or I-beam, by cutting throughthe side flanges, a, a at three adjacent sides of a rectangle andbending the flap, 6, thus formed inward as illustrated in Fig. 6.

We have thus shown and described the preferred forms in which ourinvention may be carried out, adapted to different conditions of serviceor the varying preferencesof engineers. Other mechanical modificationsmay be made; as, for example, the outer ledge, 12, extending the base orconnecting web, I), may be omitted at one or both sides; or, additionalspike holes may be provided through the web I) to duplicate the spikes,s A practicable and useful structure can be made, also, by combiningcertain features of the device shown in Fig. 1,with those shown in Fig.3; but we have not thought it necessary to exhibit these possiblevariations since they are clearly within the spirit of our invention.

We claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States- 1. A support for the meeting ends of rail- .way railsconsisting of a section of rolled channel or I-beam provided centrallywith chair plates or shields secured thereto as a permanent part of thestructure rigidly secured thereto at opposite sides within the troughformed by the sides and connecting web--said chair plates being formedto overlap and span across the meeting ends of the rail bases,substantially as set forth.

2. A railway rail-joint embodying a channel or I-beam girder spanningbetween and resting upon its connecting web upon contiguous cross-tiesand having side flanges extended vertically a sufiicient width tosustain the load-stress; and provided centrally with shoe-blocks orchair-plates as part of its structure to receive and overlap the meetingends of the rails: in combination with rails having their meeting endsresting in the secured to the beam as a part of its structure trough ofthe girder, and spikes driven into the ties and directly engaging thebases of the rails and holding the rails to the girder and therebysecuring the girder to the'ties substantially as set forth.

3. A railway rail supporting joint consisting of a section of rolledchannel or I-beam upon and spanning between contiguous ties, incombination with the rails fitted to the trough between and'in contactwith the vertical side flanges, chair plates permanently and spanningacross contiguous ends of the rail bases at each side; and rail spikesdriven at each end of the beam and at side and engaging over the basesof the rails, holding both beam and rails to the ties and preventing endplay of the beam, substantially as set forth.

4. A support for the meeting ends of railof the beam and upset, securingthe chair 0 plate to the beam, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our. hands in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

LATHAM ANDERSON. LEWIS M. HOSEA.

Witnesses:

ALBERT W. STORSMEISTER, LANDON FREYBLER.

